Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph Public Affairs
8/30/2013 - JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH, Texas -- A memorial 5K run/walk simultaneously took place at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph and Ramstein Air Base, Germany, Aug. 19 to honor the memory of Josie Seebeck, daughter of Lt. Col. Peter Seebeck, Air Education and Training Command deputy staff judge advocate.
Josie, a 19-year-old sophomore midfielder on the Central Michigan University women's soccer team, was injured in an automobile accident along with two other players Aug. 2 outside Lansing, Mich., and died Sunday, Aug. 4.
The 5K, organized by legal office staff members at JBSA-Randolph, fell on the same day as Josie's birthday and was a "dual-continent event which stood as a tribute to Jo's kindness, talent and athleticism," said Capt. Connie Wilkes, AETC judge advocate chief of commercial law.
Josie, who graduated from Ramstein High School in 2012, amassed numerous athletic accolades. She was selected for all-region, all-tournament and all-Europe first teams her junior and senior years and was named Most Valuable Player of the team, Wilkes said.
About 30 of Josie's friends and former soccer teammates at Ramstein participated in the memorial 5K in Germany. At JBSA-Randolph, more than 40 runners arrived on the running trail adjacent to the Rambler Fitness Center including Josie's mother Amy, and four younger sisters: Katherine, Margaret, Elizabeth and Madeline.
"She was a really nice kid and well loved," Peter said. "She went to (Catholic) Mass while in college and that moved her. She wanted to be a physical therapist and wanted to have a big family because she loved the one she was in.
"It was a beautiful life."
Before the event kicked off at noon at JBSA-Randolph - which was 7 p.m. at Ramstein - Maj. LaChandra Richardson, AETC judge advocate chief of strategic services, presented a portrait of Josie she drew as a commemorative birthday gift to the Seebeck family.
The gesture, followed by a prayer from Chaplain (Col.) Steven Schaick, AETC command chaplain, provided a brief moment for the family to shed some tears and rejoice in the company of those present.
"When tragedy strikes, communities large and small can step in to make all the difference," Richardson said.
Blue skies and warm temperatures marked the local 5K.
Some people ran while some walked, but everyone knew why they had to cross the finish line.
"Josie was undoubtedly an athletic person," Richardson said. "Everything she did bespoke how she pursued life: with purpose."
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